Combination washing machine and cleansing medium generator



April 28, 1954 P. M. RENTZEPIS 3,130,570

COMBINATION WASHING MACHINE AND CLEANSING MEDIUM GENERATOR Filed June2'7, 1961 1% din fr? vento'r': eter/ 1. fienzepis,

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United States Patent Ofiice 3,l3,570 Patented Apr. 28, 196 -1 3,130,573COMBENATEGN WASHING R IACHINE AND CLEANSFNG MEBiUPvi GENERATOR Peter M.Rentzepis, 1 roy, N.Y., assignor to General Electric Company, acorporation of New York Filed lane 27, 1961, Ser. No. 119,944 6 Claims.(Cl. 68-43) This invention relates to washing means generally, and moreparticularly to article washing devices employing water and/or otherliquids. More specifically, this invention relates to cloth articles orclothes washing machines or facilities, both commercial and domestic,together with an ozone and hydrogen peroxide generator and storagesystem in conjunction therewith.

One difiiculty in clothes washing machines, especially of the domestictype, relates to the necessity of employing soap and/or detergents orother cleansing mediums which are not only uneconomical in the firstinstance, but which also depend to a considerable degree on the watercondition, type of cloth, and washing cycle. Further disadvantagesrelate to the necessity not only of hot water, but also of proper soapor detergent dispensing means and methods, whether automatic, by certaindispensers attached to the machine, or manual. In either instance,continual choice, replenishment, purchases, and storage are necessary.In conjunction with these more notable disadvantages, after ordinarywashing conditions, clothes are not as white or clean as desirablebecause of known yellowing factors, and this further necessitates theaddition of various bleaches, for example, chlorine, to the wash water,or exposure to sunlight or ultraviolet light in drying of the clothes.The same problems prevail with respect to choice, purchase, storage andreplenishment, etc. of bleaches.

It has been known that certain materials, such as H hydrogen peroxide, Oozone, and 0 oxygen, provide excellent bleaching results. H 0 has foundwidespread use as such in the textile industry not only for bleachingpurposes but also to remove such substances as starches, fats, waxes,husks, and other residues in cloth weaving or manufacture. In a Washcycle as well as in bleaching processes, H 0 acts as both an oxidizerand a reducer. Fats, oils, waxes, soaps and vegetable juices may also bedecolorized by the oxidizing action of hydrogen peroxide, although morecommonly, colored matters are removed by adsorption, as by pulverizeddiatomaceous earth or activated carbon. In the same operation washcycle, the use of H 0 is preferred over chlorine since chlorine isinjurious to such fibers as the common staple cotton and to many dyes.Chlorine also causes yellowing of cotton fibers which may be removed bythe use of H 0 which itself does not cause yellowing. A more completedisclosure of the uses, properties and manufacture of H 0 in general isprovided in Hydrogen Peroxide, Schumb, Satterfield and Wentworth, ACSMonograph Series No. 128, 1955, Reinhold Publishing Corp.

Closely related to H 0 with respect to its cleansing and bleachingproperties is 0 ozone. Ozone has found widespread usage in both thesterilization and bleaching fields, and has been effectively employed asa sterilization agent for drinking water and also for sewage. The usesand preparation of 0 are more fully described in Ozone Chemistry andTechnology Advances in Chemistry, Series No. 21, ACS, March 1959.

It can thus be understood that the use of H 0 and O is a desiredcombination when applied, for example, to a home or domestic-typeclothes washing machine. Where employed previously, these materials havebeen added singly from single containers, or are added directly to thewash water in the machine in the form of compounds which decompose toprovide the mentioned materials. Salient disadvantages in the use ofthese materials are their originally uneconomical nature and theirtendency towards quick decomposition upon storage over periods of time.Furthermore, because of the decomposition and loss factors, prior ozoneaddition for domestic washing machines has been uneconomical and resultslimited.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improvedWashing machine.

It is an additional object of this invention to provide a novel devicefor automatically adding H 0 and O to the wash Water of a washingmachine.

It is still another object of this invention to provide, in combinationwith a washing machine, an apparatus for producing hydrogen peroxide,oxygen, and ozone for their admission to the Wash cycle of a washingmachine.

Briefly described, this invention in one form contemplates a combinationwith a washing machine, of the provision of dissociating air while beingsubjected to an electrical discharge, and introduction of the productsof the dissociation into water so that hydrogen peroxide, oxygen andozone may be dissolved, and thereafter introducing the Water into theWash cycle with resulting bleaching and cleansing action of O O and H 0This invention will be better understood when taken in connection withthe following description and the drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of one embodiment of this invention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a washing machine 10including a container 11 which contains the usual agitator or othermechanical energy input cleaning device, and an apparatus 12 which isemployed to provide addition of H 0 and 0 into the machine. Moreparticularly, the apparatus 12 is contained in a housing 13, having aduct or conduit 14 therein which is employed as an air entry intoapparatus 12. From air entry conduit 14, a further conduit 15 connectsto an electrical discharge device 16 so that air from conduit 14 isadmitted thereto. Electrical discharge device 16 may be an ordinaryelectrical arc discharge device, a silent dis charge device, or othertype of electrical energy device such as ultraviolet lamps which willdissociate molecules of air and produce excited species. One preferreddevice for this invention is a glow discharge type of ozonator which iscommercially available in a wide range of sizes. Examples of theseozonators are Berthelot tubes and Welsbach ozonators. A modification ofa Welsbach ozonator is illustrated in FIG. 1 by electrical dischargedevice or ozonator 16. Ozonator 16 comprises a tube 17 preferably of aborosilicate or Pyrex glass containing a pair of electrodes 18 and 19.

Electrodes 18 and 19 are connected to a suitable transformer and sourceof power (not shown) to efiect a glow discharge as is well known in theart. Incoming air passes through the glow discharge to be dissociated.Other modifications of air passage through a glow discharge device areobvious. For example, tube 17 may be a double walled tube with aninternal and external cylindrical envelope, and air is passed throughthe double wall, and insulated by the walls from direct contact with theelectrodes. Finally, device 16 may be of the u-v lamp type ozonator.

It is imperative that certain metals be avoided in the construction ofdevice 16 and equipment or surfaces thereafter, because of knowndecomposition effects of H 0 and O Preferable inert materials are,aluminum, glasses and ceramics. Metals to be generally avoided are, forexample, Cu, Fe, Ag, Mn, Cr, Md, W, Os and Pb. Incoming air passingthrough conduits 14 and 15 is suba jected to the ozonator 16 whichdissociates air into species. The products of dissociation may combinein accordance with the following reactions:

M is a body, i.e., a wall or other energy adsorbing means. t can thus beunderstood that ozone, hydrogen peroxide, and oxygen are released inthis process. However, the amount of produced is diminished by thepresence of water vapor in the air, but more H 0 forms. This isdesirable because 0 concentration should be kept low because of toxicityeffects. These effects are minimal at less than about 0.1 p.p.m. (seelatter of above references, p. 363).

Moisture or vapor in duct conduits 14 and 15 may be regulated orcontrolled by simple means, such as spraying water therein, or providinga vapor conduit such as conduit leading from the interior of washingapparatus 11. Passing of air through apparatus 12 is accomplished by apump or fan 21 positioned adjacent ozonator 16. Fan 21 may also bepositioned prior to ozonator 16 to serve the same purpose. By this meansair is admitted into the ozonator 16 from either or both conduits 14 and20. Where the air passes directly through the electrode assembly asillustrated, the water spray should be introduced close to but afterdevice 16 so that back circulation of vapor is established. Thisarrangement comprises a Water inlet 22 connected to fan 21 in aspiratingrelationship to provide a back flow of moisture into device 16. Apreferable range of water vapor in the air is 20 to 80%. Accordingly, itis understood that air is the continuous phase in this operation.

H 0 O and 0 are then introduced through conduit 23 into a chamber 24which is directly connected to the washing machine at 25 and to a sourceof water, not shown at 26. Chamber 24 is adjacent apparatus 11 butremote therefrom. Chamber 24 provides a predissolving chamber for theproducts of dissociation and a longer time period for dissolving actionto take place. Chamber 24 also provides delay time so that a suflicientquantity of bleach or cleansing water from chamber 24 is available inquantity when needed. The products of dissociation, H 0 O and 0 aresprayed through water chamber 24 so that 0 may dissolve which leads tofurther formation of H 0 Decomposition of both ozone and hydrogenperoxide provides a release of oxygen into the washing system as anoxidizing agent. In order to have a practical and economical operationwhich is programmed with usual washing cycles, it is desired to haveabout -50 ppm. of H 0 and 0 present in the wash water of a washingmachine while at the same time ascertaining that the amount of Oescaping from the water is maintained as prescribed minimal limits. Withabout 200- watt input and passing 1 cu. ft. of air through device 16 inabout 6 minutes provides eifective cleansing action in the wash cycle.

The characteristics of the water and the injection method are importantto the overall desired operation. The condition of the water employedmust be such that it contains minimal or no impurities which would reactwith the products of dissociation to form deleterious compounds, preventsubstantial dissolving of the products in the water, or to decompose theproducts. For example, the water should be free of metallic ions such asions from the metals to be avoided as described. It is, therefore,

desirable to have conduit 23 and chamber 24 of a nonmetal, such as glassto prevent decomposition.

As a requirement, water in chamber 24 should be relatively cool in orderthat ozone and H 0 will easily dissolve therein. For example, thefollowing table indicates solubility of ozone in Water at differenttemperatures:

As the temperature of the water increases, the proportion of the amountof ozone injected into the water to the amount dissolved becomes sogreat that both cost and toxicity requirements are prohibitive.

Introduction of ozone and H 0 into water may be critical. For example,introduction should take place from below the surface of the water toprovide proper transit time, so to speak, of the ozone in the water sothat the time for the dissolving action is suificient. However,dissolving action is also dependent on the manner or method ofintroduction. A mere relatively large size pipe opening into chamber 24will only introduce large bubbles of ozone into the water which willquickly pass therethrough with limited dissolving action. A preferredembodiment of this invention includes a small opening spraying apparatusto inject the ozone into the Water. Various spray nozzles are known inthe art both for water and also for various fuels. A preferred injectoris a nozzle 27 which in conjunction with pump or fan 21 provides a lowpressure cone-like dispersion of the products of dissociation in amanner similar to that as provided by fuel nozzles. By this means,substantially all injected ozone is dissolved.

By employing the combination of ozone injection and cool water, and bythe method described, there is provided in chamber 24 H 0 O and 0 eachof which contributes to cleaning and bleaching action. The formation ofhydrogen peroxide from dissolved O is enhanced by the cool wateremployed. It is, therefore, understood that introduction of ozonedirectly into hot wash water has been eliminated by means of the storagetype of chamber 24 and that a practical, and far more important,economical process of introducing a suflicient amount of ozone into thewater has been provided. In conjunction therewith, a suiiicient amountof H 0 has also been provided because of the improved injection and awater condition.

The water from chamber 24 is then introduced into Washing apparatus 11to be employed for cleaning purposes. It is not desirable to introducecool water from chamber 24 into the hot Wash Water of the wash cycledirectly or quickly because of more rapid dissipation of H 0 and O inhot water. may be employed to minimize dissipation.

As with introduction into chamber 24, the water from chamber 24 shouldbe sprayed into the wash water to attain widespread dispersion andcirculation throughout the clothes and water. It is again preferable toprovide this injection by nozzle or spray means at the bottom of thechamber containing the wash water, as described for chamber 24. Forexample, it may be seen in the drawing that exit 25 of chamber 24provides for an introduction of water from chamber 24 into water 28, incontainer 11, below the level 29 of water 28 in container 11.

A much improved clothes washing cycle may be employed to take fulladvantage of the cleansing action of H 0 O and 0 One of the moreimportant reasons for using hot wash water is that it facilitatesdissolving of detergents and soaps, and in conjunction therewith aids inSeveral preferred methods loosening foreign matter. However, mechanicalenergy input to the machine exceeds the cleaning action of additives andthe use of the teachings of this invention limits or eliminates thenecessity of soaps or detergents, etc. Hot water, therefore, is notrequired and the wash cycle may be carried out with more economicalcooler water. Where hot water is desired for its loosening action offoreign matter, a preferred cycle is described as follows. A limitedamount of hot water is added to the clothes which are permitted to soakor be agitated therein for a given period of time. At the same time, orlater, apparatus 12 is operated to provide H 0 O and 0 At the end of thesoak period, cold water is added to the hot soak water to reduce itstemperature to from about 150 F. to 120 F. or less. Thereafter, O H 0and O in water from chamber 1.5 is added to the cooled Wash water andWash cycle commences in the usual manner with preferably continualinjection from chamber 24. Full benefits are obtained when maximuminjection from chamber 24 takes place at earlier periods in the washcycle.

It is obvious that the apparatus 12 may be disconnected from the washingmachine to be employed separately albeit in connection with the washingmachine but actually at a different location. Apparatus 12 by the sametoken may be a part of the machine or separate machine so that water isintroduced therein to provide the cleaning compounds thereafterintroduced into the washing machine.

By this means, it is understood that bleaching and cleaning compoundsmay be provided directly, in combination with the washing machine, andcontrolled automaticaily, dependent upon the cycles of the washingmachine and cleansing action to be desired. Ozone and hydrogen peroxidehave essentially good cleansing properties and amounts thereof asproduced will be controlled in the same manner as the cycle of thewashing machine.

More H 0 is produced than 0 because of water vapor in the air beingdissociated. However, 0 is produced in a quantity sufiicient to providegood cleaning action in combination with H 0 good oxidizing action, andample sterilizing effect, all of which without any toxicity effects fromleakage from the wash water.

While a specific method and apparatus in accordance with this inventionhas been shown and described, it is not desired that the invention belimited to the particular description nor the particular configurationsillustrated and it is intended by the appended claims to cover allmodifications within the spirit and scope of this inven tion.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. A washing machine including a container for containing water andclothes to be washed and having operatively connected thereto acleansing medium generator, said generator comprising in combination, anair duct, means in said air duct to provide a flow of air therethrough,means operatively associated with said duct to provide additional watervapor into said air in said duct with air as the continuous phase, anelectrical discharge device operatively connected to said air duct tocause dissociation of the air flowing therein, a water chamberoperatively connected to said air duct, means for connecting said waterchamber to a source of Water to provide Water in said chamber which isfree from impurities tending to substantially deter dissolving of saiddissociated air therein, said chamber having an exit means incommunication with said container and inlet means for communication withsaid source of water, nozzle means to spray the products of dissociatedair into said water at a position substantially removed from saidchamber exit, and means to admit water from said water chamber into thewater in said container substantially below the surface of water in saidcontainer in said washing machine.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said products include H202, O3, andO2.

3. The invention of claim 1 wherein said means to dissociate air is aglow discharge device.

4. The invention of claim 1 wherein said means to dissociate air is anelectrical discharge ozonator.

5. The invention as recited in claim 1 wherein said means to dissociateair is a glow discharge device passing air directly between and incontact with electrodes therein.

6. A domestic clothes washing machine including container means forcontaining Water and clothes to be washed and having operativelyconnected thereto, a cleansing medium generator, said generatorcomprising in combination an air duct, fan means to pass air throughsaid duct, an electrical discharge device in said duct to dissociatesaid air to H 0 O and 0 a water chamber separate from said container,exit means connecting said chamber in flow communication with saidcontainer, entrance means for connecting said chamber to a source ofWater to provide water in said chamber which is free from impuritiestending to substantially deter dissolving of said dissociated airtherein, and injecting means connecting said chamber to said cleansingmedium generator so that the products of dissociation are injected intosaid water in said chamber at a point substantially removed from saidexit means and below any water level in said chamber, means connectingsaid water source to said fan to provide a back flow of water vapor intosaid electrical discharge device, and means to admit water from saidwater chamber into said container substantially below the level of watertherein so that the products of dissociation are absorbed by said waterbefore rising to the top level and escaping to the atmosphere.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,362,658 Willford Dec. 21, 1920 2,210,851 Davi Aug. 6, 1940 2,293,618Nelligan et al Aug. 18, 1942 2,344,982 Dyer Mar. 28, 1944 2,676,088Bilde et a1 Apr. 20, 1954 2,741,856 Hall Apr. 17, 1956 2,957,330 ClineOct. 25, 1960 3,065,620 Houser Nov. 27, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 364,969Germany Dec. 5, 1922 842,165 Great Britain July 20, 1960

1. A WASHING MACHINE INCLUDING A CONTAINER FOR CONTAINING WATER ANDCLOTHES TO BE WASHED AND HAVING OPERATIVELY CONNECTED THERETO ACLEANSING MEDIUM GENERATOR, SAID GENERATOR COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, ANAIR DUCT, MEANS IN SAID AIR DUCT TO PROVIDE A FLOW OF AIR THERETHROUGH,MEANS OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID DUCT TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL WATERVAPOR INTO SAID AIR IN SAID DUCT WITH AIR AS THE CONTINUOUS PHASE, ANELECTRICAL DISCHARGE DEVICE OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID AIR DUCT TOCAUSE DISSOCIATION OF THE AIR FLOWING THEREIN, A WATER CHAMBEROPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID AIR DUCT, MEANS FOR CONNECTING SAID WATERCHAMBER TO A SOURCE OF WATER TO PROVIDE WATER IN SAID CHAMBER WHICH ISFREE FROM IMPURITIES TENDING TO SUBSTANTIALLY DETER DISSOLVING OF SAIDDISSOCIATED AIR THEREIN, SAID CHAMBER HAVING AN EXIT MEANS INCOMMUNICATION WITH SAID CONTAINER AND INLET MEANS FOR COMMUNICATION WITHSAID SOURCE OF WATER, NOZZLE MEANS TO SPRAY THE PRODUCTS OF DISSOCIATEDAIR INTO SAID WATER AT A POSITION SUBSTANTIALLY REMOVED FROM SAIDCHAMBER EXIT, AND MEANS TO ADMIT WATER FROM SAID WATER CHAMBER INTO THEWATER IN SAID CONTAINER SUBSTANTIALLY BELOW THE SURFACE OF WATER IN SAIDCONTAINER IN SAID WASHING MACHINE.